UDAIPUR:
Dungarpur, the first 'open-defecation free' (ODF) city of Rajasthan has been included in the list of four cities of India as models for a
research study on sanitation. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation under its Water, Sanitation and Hygiene programme focuses on developing innovative approaches and technologies that can lead to radical and
sustainable improvements in the developing nations.
Under the programme, 16 cities in Asia and Africa have been chosen for assessing the innovative mechanisms in the area of solid and septic waste management. "Pune, Trichy, Warangal and Dungarpur are the selected cities in India where we would assess the innovative steps in the entire sanitation service chain including waste containment, emptying pits and septic tanks, transportation, sewage treatment facilities, waste treatement, disposal and resuse etc," said Prisca, the West Netherland representative of the foundation, who was in Dungarpur on Sunday.
In Dungarpur, the local bodies have made commendable achievement in keeping the city neat and clean. Door-to-door waste collection, heritage conservation, creation of a heritage walkway, solar boating at Gap Sagar lake etc are some of the major changes to have taken place.
The sanitation workers are prompt and disciplined and streets wear a clean, fresh look before commutation begins every morning. "We have been concerned about the sanitation standards in the city area and hence implemented the door-to-door waste collection system including the dry and wet waste segregation.
The foundation representative visited various wards and was impressed by the effective execution of the mechanism. "She also visited the composting unit where the waste was utilized to create compost for organic farming," KKGupta, chairman of Dungarpur municipal corporation told TOI.
